Early this morning, the 2026 Chongli 168 Supertrail 70 km category saw its winner cross the finish line.
Zhang Huohua took the men's title; Meng Guangfu finished 34 seconds back to take second.
American athleteShea Aquilano won the women's title; Ren Ti finished 47 seconds back to claim second.
Due to heavy rain in Chongli, the course was switched to an alternate route, shortening the total distance to 57 km with a cumulative ascent of 2,200 m.As a result,the race pace became faster, and the battle for the championship was particularly thrilling.
The 30 km category held this morning also used the alternate route.
American Liam Meirow won the men's title; Wen Min was second and Qi Zhaohai third. The gaps among the top three were within 46 seconds.
Chang Miaomiao won the women's title; Zhang Xi was second and Li Yingmei third.
Marathoners Fan Zuozheng, Wu Xiangdong and Xu Le 'happily' completed their trail debuts.
01
Zhang Huohua takes the 70 km title
Meng Guangfu 34 seconds back, runner-up
At 10:00 p.m. on July 11, the Chongli 168 Supertrail 70 km field set off into a rainy night.
The men's elite field was stacked — Meng Guangfu, Zhang Huohua, Zhao Hu, He Fujun, Wang Ruqin and others all had the ability to win.
After the start the lead group moved very fast. He Fujun reached CP1 Heping Aid Station first, with Zhao Hu close behind. Zhang Huohua and Dai Yuneng were third and fourth, Meng Guangfu fifth. The gaps among the top five were only around a dozen seconds.
From CP1 to CP2 (Cuiyun Summit) the top five were separated by only 5 seconds, but positions changed: Zhao Hu arrived first, followed by Meng Guangfu, Dai Yuneng and Zhang Huohua; He Fujun was fifth.
At CP3 Yunding Ski Park, Dai Yuneng entered first, with Meng Guangfu and Zhang Huohua close behind. Zhao Hu had been dropped by nearly 4 minutes; He Fujun remained fifth and Wang Ruqin sixth.
From CP3 to CP4 Wanlong Ski Resort, Zhang Huohua covered the section in just 45:18, moving up to first. But he led Dai Yuneng and Meng Guangfu by only 1 second. The three-way battle was intense. He Fujun was fourth but already 9 minutes back.
The contest among Dai Yuneng, Zhang Huohua and Meng Guangfu continued to CP5 Anaya Chongli with almost no gap. The suspense over the champion was likely to remain until the end. In a nearly 60 km trail race, such a tight fight for the win is indeed very exciting.
In the end, Zhang Huohua won in 4:31:30 — his third victory at Chongli 168.
Meng Guangfu finished second in 4:32:04, just 34 seconds behind. Dai Yuneng took third in 4:34:43.
02
American athlete wins the women's 70 km title
Ren Ti takes second — nearly pulled off an upset
In the women's race, American Shea Aquilano led from the start and was nearly 2 minutes ahead of second-place Zhang Ting at CP1.
Ren Ti sat close behind Zhang Ting. Fourth-place Fan Kaili was 4 minutes adrift of the leader. Huang Xuemei was fifth, 7 minutes back.
By CP2, the race began to take shape.Shea Aquilano extended her lead to about 5 minutes. Ren Ti and Zhang Ting ran together and entered the aid station at the same time. Fan Kaili remained fourth. Liang Yan passed Huang Xuemei to move up to fifth.
At CP3 Shea Aquilano still held roughly a 5-minute lead. Ren Ti had opened a gap on Zhang Ting and sat in second. Zhang Ting and Fan Kaili reached CP3 within moments of each other, about 12 minutes behind the leader. Barring major incidents, the top two spots looked largely settled.
From CP3 to CP4,Shea Aquilano stretched her lead to 6 minutes — was the win all but certain? Ren Ti remained second, 10 minutes clear of third-place Fan Kaili.
Ultimately,Shea Aquilano won in 5:40:13.
Ren Ti took second in 5:41:00. From being 6 minutes down to finishing just 47 seconds behind, she nearly staged a dramatic late comeback.
Zhang Ting and Fan Kaili crossed the line together, both recording 6:01:22.
03
30 km category:
Liam Meirow and Chang Miaomiao won the men's and women's titles, respectively.
The Chongli 168 Super Trail 30 km race fired off at 6:00 a.m. this morning. Like the 70 km, it used the alternate course: distance reduced to 23 km and cumulative ascent down to about 630 m. The race moved very quickly.
American Liam Meirow showed strong speed, leading from the first checkpoint and ultimately winning in 1:35:36.
Xiang Xinpeng took second with a net time of 1:35:50. Wen Min moved up to claim third in 1:35:59. The top three were separated by just 23 seconds — an extremely tight contest.
In the women's race, Chang Miaomiao claimed the title in 1 hour 52 minutes 36 seconds. Zhang Xi took second in 1 hour 53 minutes 54 seconds. Li Yingmei finished third in 1 hour 55 minutes 46 seconds.
Three marathoners—Fan Zuozheng, Wu Xiangdong and Xu Le—all finished successfully, with times of 2 hours 18 minutes 06 seconds, 2 hours 18 minutes 09 seconds and2 hours 18 minutes 09 seconds.
[End-of-article interaction]
Text/Editor: CC
Image source: Paoye Dabaozhadan
Visual: Max
